Wednesday, April 2, 2025
4/2/2025
Hospital Preparedness Program Cooperative Agreement - Project abstract-Nebraska Hospital Preparedness Cooperative Agreement In its pursuit to enhance healthcare readiness and response, the State of Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services recognizes the pivotal role of healthcare coalitions. The HPP grant funds support these coalitions, enabling them to train, exercise, and prepare for healthcare emergencies, including a surge of patients. This commitment to the sustainability and growth of the coalitions is a testament to their importance. Furthermore, the funding also promotes workforce development and retention, including resiliency. Contracts with subject matter experts provide additional support and strength to coalitions in planning, educating, training, and exercising. Our project is founded on the principle of collaboration. We offer a comprehensive statewide information-sharing platform that tracks resources of staff, space, supplies, and incident documentation with after-action reporting to ensure HSEEP (Homeland Security Exercise and Evaluation Program) requirements are fulfilled. This platform is not just for our use but for all our partners, fostering a sense of inclusivity and shared responsibility. We also actively collaborate and share information with partners during events to promote consistent messaging. Each year, we host a preparedness seminar and exercise with the PHEP (Public Health Emergency Preparedness Program) and recipients, further solidifying relationships and response efforts. Our collaboration with the Region VII RDHRE (Regional Disaster Health Response System) to share best practices, strategize for a regional response, and work with other Region VII states significantly enhances our preparedness program. Given that Nebraska houses a RESPTC (Regional Emerging Special Pathogen Treatment Center), our collaborative efforts in planning, preparing, and exercising are particularly advantageous in readying for surges of highly infectious diseases and coordinating testing, confirmation, and patient transfers at the RESPTC center when necessary. Continuity of operations planning at the state and local levels is needed to continue care and response while aiding recovery. Risk assessments are conducted to identify community and jurisdictional needs during a disaster or emergency, which are used to assist in planning and exercise. Assessments are utilized to determine funding across the HCC regions to enable coalitions to meet the needs of at-risk populations.
HHS’ Tracking Accountability in Government Grants System (TAGGS) website provides access to detailed descriptions of grants, loans, aggregated direct payments and other types of financial assistance awarded by the HHS Operating Divisions (OPDIVs) and the Office of the Secretary Staff Divisions (STAFFDIVs).